 In 2021 while Victoria Spencer was helping a local dog search and rescue hunt down a lost golden retriever at Bluegroves Farm, the owner approached her to let her know that the blueberry farm was for sale. At the time, Victoria was not working due to COVID and her husband Mike was doing factory work, so she pitched the idea to him. “So we became blueberry farmers, and yes, we found the dog, 82 days later in London!” Victoria laughed. Since then, Victoria and Mike have learned to run the farm through mentorship, resources, and constant learning. When they first bought the farm, they received some mentorship from the previous owners, and used resources like the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). In addition, Victoria and Mike are part of the Berry Growers Association, and collaborate with United States groups that solely focus on blueberries and serve as a co-op for blueberry farmers. Victoria also has Charles Stevens, President of the Fruit and Vegetable Association as a mentor. “Lots of mentorship and learning, lots of research and lots of reading stuff out of university’s like Wisconsin and Guelph,” said Victoria. Like most farms, there is more work than just the growing season at Bluegroves. Between January and May, Victoria and Mike prune all the blueberry bushes, which involves taking out the extra old/dead sticks. From May until the start of the season, they have to put in certified organic fertilizers and fungicides to keep the crops healthy. One of the methods they use for weed control is flame throwing. “It takes time, but we use a flame and we go along the rows and knock back the weeds by flaming,” said Victoria. When the season begins, they are busy organizing workers and students to come help with the farm, and in September into October they begin to hedge the bushes. “Hedging just maintains the shape and keeps the bushes from getting too tall,” Victoria explained. “We have some right now that we missed hedging last year that are 11 feet tall now, and are a little hard to pick at the top!” Victoria said with a laugh. Once November and December hit they are busy at Christmas markets in Aylmer, St. Thomas and London areas, where they bring their jams, juices, syrup, powdered blueberries, baked goods and gift boxes. This year they are also working to add a new indoor retail space on the farm, which will hopefully be done for the fall; there is always work going on year round. In addition to learning how to run the farm, they also had to learn the rules of organic farming. Bluegroves has been a certified organic farm for the last 9 years, and the process to start farm certification takes 3 years to do. Because the farm is organic, Victoria and Mike are only allowed to manage their disease control, whether it be pests or fungus; they cannot eliminate it. “We need to be top of mind monitoring our crops,” said Victoria. “We need to be conscious of what we’re using, ensuring it is registered with Pro-Cert as a safe product.” Pro-Cert is a Canada-wide certifying body for organic products, and they check all the farms records and documents, take soil samples, leaf samples, and berry samples to verify that there are no residual values from conventional inputs or chemicals. Each year the farm has to be inspected, from the soap they use on the farm to the boxes they use for their berries. “It’s quite a costly and lengthy procedure, keeping the product as safe as possible is top of mind for them,” said Victoria. “This year is 4 years in, so it’s been easier this year because we know what to expect.” The farm has to have set buffer zones and trees on the property to help manage convention input and chemical sprays. Victoria and Mike also have to work with their local neighbours and farmers each year, reminding them that they are organic and to not spray on windy days or overspray. “We have to be conscious about what’s on the farm, right down to the soap we are using,” Victoria explained. “I didn’t know I couldn’t use Palmolive soap my first year, but if there is anything residual it could contaminate our organic products, so we have to use organic approved items on the farm.”  Bluegroves Farms has been around since 1983, originally started by Bob Hatch, and the blueberry plants he planted are the same ones still growing on the farm today. Bob was one of the first blueberry farmers in the area, and he also sold plants to some of the other local blueberry farmers. The farm started with three varieties of blueberries, and now grows eight varieties throughout the season. “Those varieties were there when we bought the farm, the plants are creeping up to 45 and 50 years old in most cases,” Victoria explained. “We don’t replant, we use the same plants and prune what we have.” The farm currently has five acres for u-pick blueberries, and just over five commercial acres. Victoria told us that the u-pick was put into place by the farm's original owner, Bob, and continued with the numerous other owners. All the blueberries on the farm are hand picked and sorted, and the commercial berries are sent to a third-party farmers co-op which distributes Ontario grown berries to Sobey’s, Walmart, Loblaws, and Metro. Bluegroves Farms also comes to the Horton Market during blueberry season, and this year they will be bringing along their jams, juices and syrups. Bluegroves first started coming to the Horton Farmers’ Market in 2022, with their farm just being a short 40 minute drive away. “We’re both St. Thomas born and raised, and we’ve always known the Horton Market, so it was an easy first choice,” said Victoria. “I like the diversity of the products there; you don’t see everyone selling the same thing, and I like the music and ambiance. Everyone is friendly, you don’t feel intimidated. It’s like everyone is family and everyone helps you get set up and if you are having a rough day they help you out.” At the farm they have plenty of homemade baked goods for sale, including pies ( made with an all butter crust) and muffins; all of which are incredibly popular and are all made by Victoria. “We thought we’d make a few muffins just for people to have on the farm,” Victoria laughed. “Then it got to the point where I was making batches of 100 muffins at a time throughout the day, and now we’ve started to make 300 muffins in the morning and we’re usually out by midafternoon!” All the juices, jams and syrups are made on the farm as well, and although it is a lot of work, Victoria is happy to do it. “It’s fun, and it’s nice to turn out a good quality product where people appreciate the effort put into organic and non GMO farming.” Victoria and Mike will be at the Horton Market with their fresh, organic blueberries on Saturday July 6th for Berry Blast, along with other amazing local farms and vendors. They may also be exploring some new varieties stateside this summer though, so be sure to keep your eyes out for farm updates and more stops at Horton!
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